Pres Release: Washington Redskins Quotes

[TK]

December 2, 2010

Redskins Park

Executive Vice President/Head Coach Mike Shanahan

On Carlos Rogers’ injury status:

“He did not go today. Still a little bit sore.”

On if he is ruling Rogers out for Sunday:

“I wouldn’t rule him out, no. Pretty similar to where he was two weeks ago. Maybe a little less than last week.”

On LaRon Landry’s injury status:

“Highly, highly unlikely. I don’t want to say definitely out because if he is able to go, obviously, I put myself in some trouble there.”

On Ryan Torain’s injury status:

“He was out there running and working out. We’ll get a better feel for him tomorrow.”

On any other injury updates:

“Trent Williams hurt his shoulder a little bit today. He’s a little bit sore. He did not practice. I’m not sure exactly what happened but he hurt it at [his] house. He did not practice today. He got treatment.”

On if he is concerned about Trent Williams for Sunday:

“I don’t think so. I think he’s going to be OK. He just missed today.”

On how he handles the possibility of Tight Ends Coach Jon Embree leaving mid-season to become the Head Coach of the University of Colorado:

“I just read what Coach [bill] McCartney had said and it sounded like he’s got a good chance to get the job. I have talked to a couple of people on the board already and they had asked me if I would release him and let him go earlier than the end of the season. I told them that I would if he was given the job to help him with recruiting and staff. I’ve always believed and I’ve always had a philosophy that if one of your assistant coaches has a chance to be a Head Coach and really upgrade their job, a life-long dream for him, that I would be more than happy to let him go early. We’ve got a bunch of quality coaches on our staff that can pick up the slack. Jon’s just a heck of a football coach and a heck of a guy. If he does get the job, he’ll do a fantastic job.”

On a similar situation with former offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak turning down a job offer:

“Yeah, he did. In fact, we were in the playoffs playing the Jets and after the game he was going to take the job and then at the last second he decided to stay in the NFL and decided to stay with the Broncos.”

On if Embree has officially been offered the job:

“I read, but I don’t know that for sure.”

On if there is anything he will do to try and keep Embree on his coaching staff:

“He went to school there. He coached there for a number of years with a few different people. He’s recruited Colorado, he’s recruited California, he’s got a bunch of ties there, and it’s been a dream job of his to go there. So, I won’t even try to do that. What a great opportunity. I think that he would be perfect for that scenario if it does happen. I’ll keep my fingers crossed that he gets his dream job. You always hate to lose good people, but when coaches do a great job for you, in return you’re hoping that they can fulfill their dreams and that’s one of his dreams. Hopefully it works out.”

On what he would focus on if he had to gameplan against his own offense:

“Kind of the same thing that you guys have been telling me, ‘Hey, how many catches does Santana [Moss] have? How many catches does [Chris] Cooley have?’ I think I’d start out there with double teaming those two guys. I think that’s what you’ve got to be able to do to have the type of balance you want to have to be a top five offensive or defensive team. You know you’re going to get defenses that can gameplan and can they take your favorite targets away? Can they double team them? You’ve got to be able to go to somebody else. When you do go to somebody else, they’ve got to be able to perform. If you can’t then you’re pretty average.”

On the debate about if Brandon Banks or Anthony Armstrong is faster:

“I really don’t know. They’re both pretty fast. It’d be pretty close. [They’re] both in that 4.4.-4.3 area. Either guy is in pretty good shape. They both can run.”

On if Clinton Portis re-aggravated his groin when he went back into the game:

“How do you know for sure? Dr. Andrews told me that when he got hurt the second time. It was a different area. It was above the groin in the abdominal area. I was just going by what he said. [As for the] surgery, he’d be able to tell you a lot more than me. I have not talked to Dr. Andrews or Clinton since the surgery.”

On if he reevaluates players going back in after being hurt on a case-by-case basis:

“I’m usually pretty careful with that. Clinton wanted to come back in the Philly game and wanted to come back in a horse way and I said, ‘No, you’re not coming back.’ And I had to sit down with him and the doctors and say, ‘Hey, it’s my gut. I’ve been in this thing too long.’ He came back the next week and he was hurt. Maybe we should have kept him out another week because he did get hurt. You don’t know for sure, but it was really an awkward position where he got hurt. Was he compensating for his groin area? Maybe he was. You don’t know for sure, but if I’m going to airy on the side, it’s usually to keep a guy away as I get older instead of bringing him back too early. Obviously, that wasn’t the case.”

On if there is a place for Portis on the roster next year:

“I hope. I’m hoping that he can come back here. He’s got to make that commitment that we’ve talked about and hopefully he can be a lot healthier than he’s been over the last couple of years. So, there’s a bunch of factors. I think I’ve shared with you how I feel about Clinton. Has age caught up with him? Has the injuries caught up with him? Only time will tell.”

On his decision to put Will Montgomery in for Artis Hicks:

“What I usually do when I make a change like that is I bring Artis in my office and I explained to him why I made the change. Sometimes it’s a gut feeling and other times it’s something that you saw out of the field. In that case, it’s something I tell him I saw on the field a couple of plays. And I kind of go through, at least my evaluation and then I talk to a guy [about] what he has to do to keep a position, what he has to do or how close a position is, how close the competition is. That’s what I do. I feel that it’s in their best interest and my best interest to be as honest as I can. Obviously I’m not going to tell you what our conversation was, but I have those types of conversations especially with our veteran players.”

On if he is more cautious to put Torain in after a situation like Portis’:

“We’ve had some doctors and other people come in and look at him. He’s been trying to push himself out there. A player normally knows. I’m not a doctor. I don’t pretend to be. So, when a doctor is saying they’re ready to go, the trainers are saying they’re ready to go, the strength is there, then we’re working them. We’ve got enough things to do besides trying to pretend that we know when a guy is ready to go back in. Our training staff does a great job of working these guys out and they get treatment three or four times a day. I know a guy like Ryan is biting at the bit. He’s been hurt through most of his career. He’s got an opportunity to show what he can do and unfortunately, he’s not able to come back yet. Hopefully tomorrow.”

On if he anticipates seeing Devin Thomas:

“I really don’t know. I don’t know where he’s at. They’ve got a couple of injuries. I’m not sure where Steve Smith, they said he participated today. Is he going to be ready or not? I don’t know for sure. Is Devin going to play? I’m sure he’s getting used to the playbook and I’m not sure how the coach is going to use him—special teams, wide receiver. Like I said before, I’m pulling for Devin. I’m hoping he plays in the league. I think he’s a class guy. I think he’s worked extremely hard and I’m really pulling for him, just not wanting him to play good this weekend.”

Offensive Coordinator Kyle Shanahan

On the competition between offensive linemen Will Montgomery and Artis Hicks:

“We have been having competition there. Artis has beaten him out most of the year. Will had done a good job during the week. Artis was coming off an injury and struggling on a couple of things so coach decided to make a change out there.”

On if it was the injury that caused the movement between Hicks and Montgomery:

“Yes. I think this time of year everybody is a little bit banged up and it obviously makes it a little harder to go. [Hicks] missed a couple and we felt good with how Will [Montgomery] was doing at the time so coach thought it was in best interest of the team to put Will in.”

On the success of last week’s first drive:

“We knew it was a tough defense. They were a bend but don’t break defense. They play a Tampa 2 scheme. They don’t give up many big plays. We have gotten big plays this year, but we have struggled to maintaine drives. I knew it was going to be a challenge going against them. It was really exciting to have our longest drive of the year the first drive. We made a good third and long with Roydell [Williams] on the screen and kept some things going. It was frustrating not to be able to do it again after.”

On if the Redskins made any adjustments on how they played the first drive:

“No, they play the same coverages every week. I think it was we didn’t make a big screen play, I think it was four and nine a couple plays, and I think we had four third downs in that drive. We get third downs going, you keep drives going and you get to have some plays. It wasn’t really that they didn’t do anything different, we just did a lot better on the first drive than the rest of the game.”

On the running game:

“Not getting the running game going is a huge factor. We felt good about it in the first half. Going against that defense, if anyone has played them in the last five years, they are pretty stout against the run. But, you definitely got to keep them off balance. I thought we did a decent job of that in the first half. I think we were 12 runs and 19 passes, but once got into that second half we only had 20 plays in the second half. It is tough to really maintain a running game when you only have 20 plays. When you are down two scores going into the fourth, the game doesn’t really allow us to get the running game going.”

On the lack of a running game diminishing the effectiveness of a passing game:

“No, you can still do both. Defensive linemen really tee-off when you are not running the ball. They are going be in pass rush mode a lot more and you start to lose your play action, play pass, your keepers and your movement. It does become a drop back game when your running game is taken away.”

On if they decided to pass more early or if they decided to do that because of the score:

“No, we were as balanced as we wanted to be in the first half. It was about 12 to 19 I believe. I don’t know if it was exactly right, but it was what we planned on going into the game. Now, the second half was extremely unbalanced and that was because the score dictated it.”

On how much time he takes to evaluate what he needs in the offense:

“We evaluate every week. That is why we are having guys compete out there. You bring in practice squad guys and you have injuries, so you are always evaluating them. But, this NFL season and the coaching world it is definitely an in the moment [mindset], so we are thinking about Sunday every week.”

On determining when a player like wide receiver Terrence Austin is game ready when he doesn’t have game film to watch:

“There are a lot of factors. We kept Terrence here because we felt he would be ready anytime we needed him. When we had a lot of injuries, especially after that Tennessee game, we knew we were going to bring some guys that would give us some options on special teams. In Joey [Galloway’s] case, he didn’t do any special teams. Once we lost some guys, we knew Terrence would be able to help us at receiver, but we knew he wouldn’t get on the field as a receiver unless injuries happen. There is no need to bring him up to just sit there, but once we had some injuries on special teams and we knew he could help us with our active roster. [We would] fill him in there and if someone got hurt to help us as a receiver. He would help the team.”

On what he thinks coaches gameplans are against his offense:

“I don’t know. I think that it wasn’t just Andre [Johnson] in Houston, they had the gameplan for a lot of guys. I mean I am not sure you will have to ask someone else that.”

On evaluating running back James Davis in a game verses practice:

“He did a good job in the few runs that he had. We never did have a chance to get going though. I think he had six carries or something. I think you can’t get a full evaluation until you get a chance to get a guy in a rhythm and get more carries. I would like to see more out of him.”

On what he saw out of Davis in those six carries:

“We didn’t really have a chance to give him his own. On some of the carries he had he didn’t have much room. He had one he had a good chance to go and he got a little bit tripped up, but no there was no final evaluation. We see a good runner in practice and once we can get him going I expect to see that in games.”

On if running back Keiland Williams is better suited as a third down back and if that is why Davis played:

“No, we started Keiland and we just wanted to give James a shot. It will be like that week to week. We will work on that with [Running Backs Coach] Bobby [Turner] and we decide who is going and who has got the hot hand. You never really know until the game plays out.”

On if Minnesota had anything to do with getting the tight ends involved in the first drive:

“No, that has nothing to do with anything. It is with the coverages and the coverage dictates where the ball goes.”

On wide receiver Brandon Banks:

“[His knee] has gotten better each week. I think after the first week he got a little sore, but since then he has been a little fresher each Wednesday we have come out here.”

On if he feels like he can use the Wildcat throughout the game:

“You always could. You can do whatever you want, but that was my first time experiencing it and putting in the Wildcat. We did it for one play out of Houston and it is usually like that. You see what happens and you see if it gets you some yards and you can always use some stuff to play off that.”

Defensive Coordinator Jim Haslett

On cornerback DeAngelo Hall:

"I think he's been much more than I expected. He's done an excellent job. He's a good football player. We're talking about from the leadership standpoint, I think he's really stepped up his game from that standpoint. He gets a lot of interceptions. He has a lot of PBs (pass breakups). He's also a good tackler for a corner. I think that stands out the most, that and his leadership skills."

On if Hall is having a Pro Bowl type of season in his opinion:

"I think so. He's one of the better corners in the league. I said it to somebody the other day, he should have about 10 interceptions. He's got six, but there are still five games to go. I think he can get up there in double digits."

On the best cornerbacks he has coached:

"I would have to think about it because we had some pretty good corners. I think D-Hall is right up there with them."

On the contributions of linebacker Lorenzo Alexander:

"He's a good, solid player. For a guy to be a 3-technique, offensive guard, defensive tackle, do a number of things and then all of sudden go out and play outside linebacker, that's not an easy thing. It's not an easy thing for anybody. For somebody who has always had his hand in the dirt or playing a lot of different positions, I think he's done an outstanding job for making the transition to a linebacker spot."

On if certain offensive players draw extra attention when creating a defensive game plan:

"I think most people do that. You try to find out who their best players are, and you probably can't stop them, but try to slow them down or eliminate them as much as you can. It's not that hard. You look at a certain team, you figure this guy has 100 catches and they got a running back last week around 1,000 yards, that's the guys you have to try to prepare to stop if you want to win the game."

On the pass rush:

"I would like the total [sacks] to be a little bit more. People are really concentrating on him (Brian Orakpo). For him to have 8.5 [sacks] is kind of amazing to be honest with you because people are sliding to him, chipping him. They know where he is at. I think you always have to have two or three to have a really good defense. One year in New Orleans, I had La'Roi Glover had 18.5, Joe Johnson had like 12.5, Darren Howard had like 11.5 [sacks]. The same year we had a bunch of guys with nine, eight, scattered fours. That's why you end up with 50 or 60. I don't know if you'll ever get those numbers again but that's why you have the numbers. Right now, we got one guy with [8.5 sacks] and then kind of a little bit scattered everywhere."

On if he expects both of the outside linebackers to get to the quarterback equally:

"If you look at, I can't remember the numbers from last year, I am using Pittsburgh for example, I think [James] Harrison had [10 sacks]. [LaMarr] Woodley had maybe [13.5]. That's the numbers you would like. When we were in Pittsburgh, Jason Gildon had 10, 12 a year. Greg Lloyd had 10, 12 a year."

On if they are comfortable with the 3-4 base or has the game plan dictated it:

"We've gone actually with the 3-4 over the last three or four games because of the teams we are playing. It's a better run defense. That's kind of what we are built around. You got a lot of different packages nickel, fast nickel. You got goal line, short yardage, and heavy. We got a lot of different packages but that is the base one."

On if it is different preparing for the Giants without wide receivers Hakeem Nicks and Steve Smith:

"It goes back to the original question. Who do you look at and try to prepare for and try to stop? When you look at the Giants you say well, they have two really good running backs. They got a heck of a quarterback. Then all of a sudden you got three wide outs and a pretty good tight end and a pretty good line. Now take away the two receivers and it makes it obviously a little bit easier. It cuts down on all of the things you have to do. You can focus in on one or two things."

On if he expects to see wide receiver Devin Thomas on Sunday:

"I don't know. They have had so many guys playing receiver you forget, he's [number] 13, 84, they've been dialing them up. They have done a good job taking guys that haven't played in a while and playing them and they are doing a good job"

On if teams are playing coverage against Eli Manning or is the offensive line responsible for the lack of sacks against:

"A little bit of both. It's him, it's the line, he's kind of like his brother, he doesn't take the sack. He does a pretty good job of getting rid of the ball. He's a big body guy. You guys ever meet Archie [Manning]? Archie is big, but Archie is not like 6'5'' like his two kids. He's got two kids that are 6'5'', 6'6'', 250 [pounds] and I don't know where it came from. They are also hard to get down is what I am trying to say. He's a big body. He doesn't take a lot of sacks. He gets rid of it. He's got a quick release. There're number of different reasons."

On if the Giants matchup is good based on the turnover numbers:

"We would like to think so. We didn't get any last week which wasn't the most disappointing thing but one of them. That's one of the keys to beating them. I think you got to try and get some turnovers and create them. They have had some issues with that. I think they have kind of fixed them the last couple of weeks but obviously that's one of the keys to winning football games."

On making sure cornerback Kevin Barnes is relaxed when he gets into the game:

"I really don't. In this league, everyone on the roster usually has an opportunity to play at some point. When you get that opportunity, what are you going to do with it and I think that's where Kevin is at right now. I said before, here's a guy that is 6'1'' , he's long legged. He's got good feet. He was a high draft pick. Sooner or later somebody has got to give him an opportunity to play and see can he play in this league or he can't play in the league. Some guys don't get those opportunities and some teams they go somewhere else and they are stars. I don't know. Kevin has played 14 plays. Last week, I think he played [8], somewhere in that area. I think he's got to make the most of it with Carlos [Rogers] out. If he can perform and make a few plays then as coaches you would feel more comfortable. Let's try him at some corner. Let's let him play some and get some reps. I think that's where he's at right now. I think he needs to be opportunistic and try to take advantage of the next couple of weeks."

On if he can tell from what he sees in practice if Barnes is ready to play at a certain level:

"You see all of the quickness. He's very intelligent. I don't know if you know this last week but he went in and played a snap at safety. He just ran on the field and I think he had the least mistakes of all the players in the offseason. He's got a lot of good qualities. He's got the height. He's got the speed and he's smart. He's got a lot of good qualities. Hopefully, that will pay off into being a productive football player."

On how much he has had to adjust based on injuries:

"I think you adjust anytime you have players out especially guys like LaRon [Landry] and Carlos [Rogers], especially the caliber of those type guys. Everybody else in the league does the same thing like the team we are playing has wide outs missing so they have to adjust their offense. You have to adjust around the guys you have on defense. I thought last week Reed [Doughty] did an excellent job stepping in and playing at that spot and Kareem [Moore] played one of his better games, probably his best game he's played since he hurt his leg. Guys stepped up, did a good job, but obviously LaRon is one I think of the elite players and you miss guys like that but you have to adapt to what you have."

On if he has been calling as many secondary blitzes with safety LaRon Landry and cornerback Carlos Rogers out:

"LaRon is a pretty good blitzer so that's one thing. We blitz him a lot. I'm not saying Reed [Doughty] and Kareem [Moore] aren't, but I think he's really good at it. It's based on who you are playing and can you get to the guy and all of that stuff."

On if Rogers will be a game time decision on Sunday:

"I am not sure. I'm just trying to work with the guys that we got."

Defensive Lineman Ma’ake Kemoeatu

Ed Block Courage Award Recipient

On if the award is more gratifying because it is his first year here:

“I think the most gratifying [thing] about it is that you have the support of your teammates. Being that it's my first year here, and of course my teammates have to get to know me first. I got here in April, just trying to recover from the torn Achilles and make a comeback, and my teammates respect that. This feels really good.”

On the hardest part of recovering from the injury:

“The hardest part was missing a season. I missed a whole year of football. I tore my Achilles in training camp 2009. I had to get it repaired, had surgery, and after the surgery the skin got infected so I had to have another surgery to get a skin graft. And when I first got here, [Head Athletic Trainer] Larry Hess and the trainers got on me quick. From April all the way until training camp we've been working on it and rehabbing and making a comeback. It wasn't normal until probably, maybe the end of preseason, I started feeling like I could walk normal again.”

On if retirement ever crossed his mind:

"When I first tore it. The day that I tore it the trainers said 'You are done.' I was like 'I'm done? Done for the day? Tape me back up and put me back out there.' They said 'No, you are done for the season.' I'm like, wow, I'm done for the season. I was like 'What's wrong?' They said 'You've torn your Achilles. It's takes a year to come back from it.' It did cross my mind. I was like football could be over for me being that it was eight years, it could be over. Football is not forever. It could be over at any time."

On how he thinks he has held up physically this season:

“So far physically, I've started feeling better maybe halfway through the season. I guess because I missed out a year. Of course with my size, I'm at 350 [pounds] now, there was a point a year ago I was about 400 pounds, and trying to make a comeback from that is really tough. But we made it happen, and the guys voted for me. I appreciate the guys giving the vote.”

On how it feels to win the award:

“What it means to me is the respect of my teammates. I was out here working out with them. They know I was injured. That just shows me that they have my back, through thick and thin. We have a good atmosphere in the locker room, and we have great team captains. Everything has been going well.”